Inaugural newsletter! Gigabit City Summit, Future of Ed Tech & More

Post navigation

It’s been a little over two years since the Kansas City area’s digital playbook was published and KC Digital Drive was formed to aid its implementation. In those two years, much progress has been made. To track that progress and showcase "playbook 2.0," we’re working hard on a new website, which will be ready for next year’s inaugural Gigabit City Summit, featured below.

In the meantime, we’re launching this monthly missive to help keep track of the story of digital innovation throughout the Kansas City area. I’d also like to take this opportunity to introduce Jason Harper, our new communications director, without whom neither initiative would be possible.

There is so much incredible activity happening in KC right now, but much work left to be done. Hope you enjoy, and we look forward to your feedback!

Sincerely,
Aaron Deacon
Managing Director, KC Digital Drive

Featured Stories

Registration Is Open for the Gigabit City Summit
JAN. 13 – 15 AT BLOCH EXECUTIVE HALL
The must-attend conference for leaders in U.S. cities with gigabit connectivity is coming to Kansas City. Organized by KC Digital Drive, the Gigabit City Summit is designed to help smart-city leaders and innovators cultivate ideas for transforming their communities and then put those ideas into action. Join us January 13-15, 2015 in KC! Learn more. | TWEET

Sprint Accelerator Reverse Pitch
OCT. 8 AT SPRINT ACCELERATOR
Instead of a startup pitching their business, the Sprint Accelerator Reverse Pitch on Oct. 8 challenges area healthcare practitioners to pitch their innovative ideas to a roomful of technologists and business leaders who can bring their ideas to life. Get information and submit your idea here. (Sponsored by KC Digital Drive.) | TWEET

The Future of EdTech: Teaching for the Future and the Digital Classroom
OCT. 9 AT THINK BIG PARTNERS
How are developments in mobile technology and high-speed broadband affecting education? Join us this Thursday, Oct. 9, for a special Big Kansas City pop-up event designed in collaboration with the Hive KC Learning Community. The Future of EdTech features Kansas City-based startups and schools making real differences in the lives of local children, parents and teachers as we talk about what the future of ed tech and progressive digital curricula looks like in our fiber-connected city. (Sponsored by KC Digital Drive.) Register now. | TWEET

Digital Inclusion Summit
OCT. 17 AT KC LIBRARY
What would you do if you had no connection at home? How would you stay in touch with family? How would you get — or keep — a job? On Friday, Oct. 17, the Digital Inclusion Summit co-organized by KC Digital Drive and the Kansas City Public Library will bring together community stakeholders to address the problem of the digital divide, which affects more than 25% of Kansas Citians. Read more. | TWEET

The Power of Digital Storytelling
OCT. 22 AT UNION STATION
Could Kansas City become a hub for digital storytelling? According to MARC, there are already more than 34,000 digital storytelling professionals in the region. A former Hallmarker thinks this spells big economic opportunity, and he aims to prove it with his DigiStory Center and the Power of Digital Storytelling Conference on Oct. 22. Read more. (Sponsored by KC Digital Drive) | TWEET

Google Fiber & The Digital Divide
Two recent WSJ articles by Alistair Barr call attention to the digital divide question raised by Google Fiber’s rollout strategy, which requires neighborhoods to express demand before the service is deployed. Our quick take: the digital divide preceded fiber-optic networks, and much work needs to be done apart from infrastructure. Read: Google Fiber Leaves a Digital Divide, Google Fiber Is Fast, But Is It Fair? (both paywall)

Community Notes

KC Women in Technology is teaching tech skills to middle-school girls. KCWiT’s Tech sHeroes program is the first recipient of grant funding through the Hive KC Digital Drive Fund. KCDD established the fund in partnership with the Mozilla Hive KC Learning Community to support local programs in technology-driven youth learning. Read more about KCWiT at Silicon Prairie News, and learn more about the Fund here.

Share this:

Like this:

Related

Post navigation

Published by ibsa

IBSA is a nonprofit organization that provides direct employment or career counseling, micro-enterprise training & development and facilitates courses involving specialized training and certification. Educational opportunities are provided in partnership with the Kansas Department of Commerce, the Workforce Partnership of Service Delivery Area III, and other government and nonprofit agencies.
View all posts by ibsa